Updates: Week of September 11

Updates: Week of September 11

Thank you for taking the time to read our blog! We will update this blog every couple weeks with some important information, as well as what we are learning in the classroom. 

If you were unable to attend Curriculum Night, please see the previous blog post. Here is the link to the presentation that was shared that evening.

Things Happening at TCE:

• Tonal Texans: Mr. Miller will have auditions for the 4th Graders interested in Tonal Texans this Tuesday, September 12th, before school. Last week, your learner was given a handout with information about the Tonal Texans. Here is the link to a copy of the handout. Please contact Mr. Miller (pmiller@coppellisd.com) if you any questions.

• Book Fair: "Share your talents and join us in creating memories for our learners! Our TCE Book Fair is right around the corner and we're looking for volunteers to help make it a huge success. Please sign up at: tinyurl.com/TCEBF17"

The learners will be attending a "Book Fair Preview" later this week, and will have the opportunity to purchase items from the TCE Book Fair during the week of September 18th-22nd.

• Texan Town Popcorn Subscription: The learners have the option to purchase popcorn on Fridays during Texan Town, which will begin this week. They can pay $3.50 for a popcorn subscription for the entire fall session, or they can bring $0.50 for a single purchase.

• Special Friends Day: Special Friends Day at TCE is right around the corner! On Friday, September 22nd from 12:30-1:30 learners may invite special friends (such as family members or close family friends) to visit during this time. During their visit, the learners' special friends will have the chance to visit our classroom, the book fair, and other areas of our school. Please let us know if you have any questions!

• Fall Family Picnic: TCE's Annual Fall Family Picnic will be Friday, September 22nd at 5:30 PM at the Town Center pavilion right next to our school. This is a fun event for the whole family, and we hope to see you there!

Curriculum Tidbits:

Math: 

The 4th graders have been learning about place value of whole numbers to the billions place by engaging in a variety learning experiences. The learners will understand that patterns in our place value system inform how numbers are formed, written, and expressed, and that rounding gives us an approximate number that is useful for estimating and solving problems.

Science:

In Science, we will be exploring matter. The learners will learn how to measure mass, weight, and volume. They will also be learning the differences between solutions and mixtures.

ELAR:

In reading, we will continue to discuss and learn about what real reading looks like, sounds like, and feels like. We will practice strategies to be metacognitive while we read.
Here is the link to the reading requirement presentation. You can also find this presentation on Miss Peccarelli's and Miss Natherson's websites. Please let us know if you have any questions.

In writing, we will continue to practice building our writing stamina with a variety of brainstorming strategies. We will also begin to explore the Six Traits of Writing.

Social Studies:

In SS, we will continue our study on the different regions of Texas. In addition, we will be participating in Celebrate Freedom Week this week with different activities.

Updates - August 27th

We had a really outstanding first week of school! We have loved getting to know our new fourth graders, and we are looking forward to a really fantastic year. 

Important Reminders & Updates

Family Pictures
As a reminder, we would like for each fourth grader to share a picture of his/her family. You may send in a printed picture or you may email a copy of a picture to your child's teacher. 

Google Calendar
You may have noticed that we have a Google Calendar embedded at the top of this blog. We will keep this calendar updated with important dates throughout the year, so please be sure to check it whenever you visit our blog. 

Upcoming Events 

Curriculum Night

Town Center Curriculum Night will be this Thursday, August 31st from 6:30-7:30 in the TCE Library. During Curriculum Night, we will share a short presentation that will cover important curriculum details and procedures for the year. We would love it if you could be there! We will also share our presentations on this blog next week, so if you are unable to make it to Curriculum Night, we will still be able to share the information with you. 

What's Happening in Fourth Grade
This week, we will continue to set up procedures for the classroom, including workshop, mini-lessons, and independent work time. 

If you are interested in seeing pictures and updates from inside our classrooms, please take a minute to visit our Twitter Accounts. You may also search the hashtag #tce4th on Twitter to see posts from all five of us. 

What's Happening at TCE

Safety Reminders
Our principal, Dr. Applegate, sent an email with some important safety reminders for TCE, which we are including here as well. 

As we start each school year, I ask that you please review the safety items below. Safety is a high priority for our campus and we appreciate you all doing your part to help ensure our whole school community is looking out for one another each day.   

• Please make sure that you always are using the crosswalks in the front and back loops when walking your child across our driveways into school.  There is a teacher stationed at the crosswalks with a stop sign from 7:20am-7:35am and 3:05p-3:15p.
• Also, please avoid parking anywhere that might block another vehicle in (such as along a curb in the front parking lot) and only use the front and back loops for dropping off. (single lane drop off only, not double lane)  
• If you are dropping your child off in the parking lot, you must park your car in a space and walk them to the crosswalk.  Then we will help to cross them.  If you are late and our crossing guards are no longer there, you must park, get out of your car and walk your child across.  

• Please do not stop your vehicle in the traffic loops to get out of your car as this can become a danger to other cars as well as create a block in our flow of traffic. Our front loop is designated for Kinder-2nd grade and our back, cafeteria loop is for 3rd-5th grade pick up and drop off.

School Supplies & Grade Level T-Shirts

• If you would like to order a grade level t-shirt for your son or daughter, you may order them online at https://towncenterpto.membershiptoolkit.com/. You will need to register for PTO before you will be able to order a shirt. 
• If you still need to order school supplies, you may also order from the same link (above). 
• If your son or daughter already has supplies, but still needs an agenda, earbuds, or a recorder, they may buy those from the front office. 

We really appreciate you taking a few minutes to read our blog post. If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to reach out to your son or daughter's homeroom teacher. Our emails are below: 

• mpeccarelli@coppellisd.com
• kseifert@coppellisd.com
• mnatherson@coppellisd.com
• jltaylor@coppellisd.com
• hbass@coppellisd.com 

Last Week Updates!

We cannot believe that it is the last week of school! This school year has flown by, and we have loved getting to know our students. Please read this quick post with a few important announcements for the last week of school. 

Important Announcements

Lunch Menu Change

• Mrs. Star has asked us to share the following menu changes with you:
• Tuesday, May 31 - Nachos with Chili & Cheese or Nachos with Veggie Chili & Cheese Or Yogurt Plate With veggies, fruit and milk
• Wednesday, June 1 - Slice Cheese or Pepperoni Pizza or Cheese Pizza Stixx or Yogurt Plate With veggies, fruit and milk
• Thursday, June 2 - Hamburger or Yogurt Plate With veggies, fruit and milk

Last Week/Early Dismissal

• We will have a regular schedule on Tuesday and Wednesday. 
• Our last day of school will be Thursday, June 2nd, and the learners will have early dismissal at 12:50 PM. On this day, we will have a modified schedule, and the learners will have the chance to eat lunch at school or to wait and eat once they get home. 
• Your son/daughter will receive their report card on Thursday, June 2nd. 

Summer Learning

• We have created a short presentation with ideas and resources for summer learning for our kids. Many parents have asked us for ideas about what the kids can work on over the summer, so we assembled this list. It is optional and more for you than for us.  
• Summer Learning Presentation

Library Updates

• If you have any questions regarding overdue books or fines, please encourage your son/daughter to speak to Mrs. Montgomery about it, or you may reach out to her at amontgomery@coppellisd.com. 

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Thank you, again, for taking the time to read our blog. We hope that all of our Fourth Grade Families have a relaxing and enjoyable summer, and we look forward to seeing you all again in August. Please feel free to keep in touch with us over the summer via email. 

Updates: Week 33

Thank you for taking the time to read our blog.  There is a lot of important information in this post. As always, please let us know if you have any questions. 

Important Announcements

STAAR Testing

• We will take our Math STAAR on May 9th and Reading STAAR May 10th.
• As a reminder, we will not be able to have any visitors on the building on these two days. 

Field Trip

• As you know, we will be going to the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History on May 18th. 
• Please click this link for more information regarding our field trip. Please let us know if you have any questions regarding our trip.

Spring Conferences

• We are still in the process of scheduling conferences for those of you that requested a conference (face to face, email, and phone). Thank you for being flexible with our schedules as we set up these conferences! We are doing our best to get back to everyone in a timely and efficient matter. 

Library Updates

• Mrs. Montgomery has shared these important dates with our learners, but we wanted to share them with you as well. 
• Friday, May 13 - last day for students to check out books
• Friday, May 20 - all library books due
• If you have any questions regarding overdue books or fines, please encourage your son/daughter to speak to Mrs. Montgomery about it, or you may reach out to her at amontgomery@coppellisd.com. 
• Also, we will have an author's visit on Monday, May 23rd. Author Candace Fleming will be coming to speak to our TCE Texans. For more informaiton, see this link. Learners will be coming home with book order forms this week, so be on the look out. 

Recorder Program

• Our fourth grade recorder program will be Tuesday, May 24th. We will have a morning performance at 8:30 and an evening performance at 6:00. 
• The fourth graders will need to be at school at 5:45 pm on the evening of the performance. 
• Mrs. Garrett has asked that the learners wear jeans and their orange grade level t-shirt. 

Upcoming Dates

• Friday, May 6th - Mother's Day Marathon
• Monday, May 9th - Math STAAR
• Tuesday, May 10th -  Reading STAAR
• Friday, May 13th - Last Texan Town of the Year
• Wednesday, May 18th - Field Trip
• Friday, May 20th - Field Day
• Monday, May 23rd - Author's Visit 
• Tuesday, May 24th - Recorder Concert (AM and PM) 
• Thursday, May 26th - Holiday Coupon: A Movie & Popcorn
• Monday, May 30th - No School/Memorial Day
• Thursday, June 2nd - Last Day of School

Character Education
The citizenship quality for May is patience. 

Each week, Town Center focuses on one life principle, or guiding character quality. The life principles for each week are discussed on the morning announcements and will be posted on our agendas. 

What are we learning?
Math & Science

In math, the learners are investigating the different parts of lines, types of angles, and how these relate to the geometric shapes. The learners are also being given the opportunity to choose which units they think they need the most practice in to review for the STAAR test next week. 

In science, the learners will continue investigating in our life science unit. They will be learning how organisms change in appearance throughout their life cycle, and how organisms live, grow, and respond to their environments. 

Language & Literacy

In reading, we have been working through some fun and exciting nonfiction reading stations. The learners have enjoyed learning a bunch of new facts and sharing them with their peers. We've also been focusing on reviewing reading content vocabulary with a variety of games in class. 

In writing, we've been focusing on writing poetry. The learners investigated four types of poetry: haiku, diamante, cinquain, and limerick, and they are each writing their own poems in class.

We have also reintroduced weekly spelling lists after a short break in April. This week the learners are learning Greek word parts, and they'll learn about Latin roots the week after next.  

Social Studies

In Social Studies, we're exploring the successes and challenges that the Republic of Texas faced after the Texas Revolution. The learners will explore the reasons for annexation and the Mexican and American War. 

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Thank you, again, for taking the time to read our blog. We are looking forward to another great week with our fourth graders! 

Updates: Week 31

Thank you for taking the time to read our blog.  There is a lot of important information in this post. As always, please let us know if you have any questions. 

Important Announcements

Field Trip

• As you know, we will be going to the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History on May 18th. 
• Please click this link for more information regarding our field trip. Please let us know if you have any questions regarding our trip. 

STAAR Testing

• We will take our Math STAAR on May 9th and Reading STAAR May 10th. 

Spring Conferences

• We do not get a designated day for spring conferences like we do in the fall, but we will be able to offer conference times (either face to face or via phone/email) to those that are interested. 
• We sent home conference interest forms last week, and we requested that they be returned by Monday, April 18th. However, due to the fact that we received so few of them back, we've extended the deadline to Tuesday, April 19th. Even if you are not interested in a conference, please let us know because we want to be sure we've given everyone a chance to have a conference. Thank you for your help & support with this. 

Engineering Extravaganza 

• Our annual Engineering Extravaganza will be this Thursday, April 21st from 5:30-7:00. Our TCE teachers will be leading a variety of stations that highlight different engineering skills and tasks. We think it will be a lot of fun, and we hope you and your family can make it. 

Upcoming Dates

• Thursday, April 21 - Engineering Extravaganza 
• Friday, April 22 - Spring Spirit Run
• Friday, April 29th - Holiday Coupon: A Picnic Outside for Lunch
• Friday, May 6th - Mother's Day Marathon
• Monday, May 9th - Math STAAR
• Tuesday, May 10th -  Reading STAAR
• Friday, May 20th - Field Day
• Tuesday, May 24th - Recorder Concert (AM and PM) 
• Thursday, May 26th - Holiday Coupon: A Movie & Popcorn

Character Education
The citizenship quality for April is Effort. 

Each week, Town Center focuses on one life principle, or guiding character quality. The life principles for each week are discussed on the morning announcements and will be posted on our agendas. 

What are we learning?
Math & Science

In math, the learners are investigating the different parts of lines, types of angles, and how these relate to the geometric shapes. 

In science, the learners are participating in an engineering experience where they get to work collaboratively to create a hot air balloon. They will be investigating the different parts of ecosystems. 

Language & Literacy

In reading, we will focus on nonfiction texts this week. Learners will be able to choose from a variety of nonfiction passages based on their interests. 

Social Studies

In social studies, we are wrapping up our study of the Texas Revolution. The learners created word clouds to demonstrate what they've learned about various vocabulary terms. Ask your learner about the different Mind Missions they've participated in during this unit.  They've designed rain protection devises, toys, and disguises! 
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Thank you, again, for taking the time to read our blog. We are looking forward to another great week with our fourth graders! 

Updates Week 27

Thank you for taking the time to read our blog.  There is a lot of important information in this post. As always, please let us know if you have any questions. 

Thank you to our fourth grade families that were able to come to Open House. We enjoyed seeing you, and we know our learners loved showing off their hard work. 

Important Announcements

Field Trip

• As you know, we will be going to the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History on May 18th. As a reminder, all field trip permission slips and money are due Friday, April 1st. This includes chaperone money and forms.
• Please click this link for more information regarding our field trip. Please let us know if you have any questions regarding our trip. 

STAAR Testing

• Our first round of STAAR testing is quickly approaching. Our fourth graders will take the writing STAAR test on Tuesday, March 29th. 
• Due to testing security, visitors will not be permitted in the building on STAAR testing days, Tuesday, March 29th and Wednesday, March 30th. (The fourth graders will not be taking STAAR on Wednesday, but the fifth grade will be.)
• Due to STAAR testing, we will not have tutoring next week (March 28-April 1). 
• We will take our Math and Reading STAAR tests on May 9th and 10th. 

Safety Reminders

• As a reminder, students are not permitted in the building before 7:15 am each day. Supervision begins at this time, so when they are in the building prior to 7:15, they are unsupervised. 
• If your learner has tutoring in the morning, he/she should go straight to his/her educator's classroom. 

Holiday Coupons! 

• For the holidays, we gave our students a coupon book. Within this coupon book, there is a coupon for a fun experience for each month. We will send reminders as those days get closer, but you may want to go ahead and mark them in your calendar now. The dates are listed in the Upcoming Dates section. 

Upcoming Dates

• Thursday, March 24 - Spirit Rally
• Friday, March 25 - NO SCHOOL (Weather Day)
• Tuesday, March 29 - Writing STAAR Test 
• March 31st - Holiday Coupon: 30 Minutes of Non-electronic Game Time
• Friday, April 1 - Field Trip Permission Slip & Money Due
• Thursday, April 7 - Volunteer Breakfast 
• Friday, April 15 - TCE Hoedown
• April 29th - Holiday Coupon: A Picnic Outside for Lunch
• May 26th - Holiday Coupon: A Movie & Popcorn

Character Education
The citizenship quality for March is Honesty. 

Each week, Town Center focuses on one life principle, or guiding character quality. The life principles for each week are discussed on the morning announcements and will be posted on our agendas. 

What are we learning?
Math & Science

*NEW MATH WEBSITES*
This week the learners were introduced to two new Math websites that they can use at school, as well as at home. The websites are listed below:
Prodigy- prodigygame.com/play
Khan Academy- khanacademy.org

In math, we will be continuing our unit on measurement this week. The learners will be investigating customary and metric units, mass, volume, area, perimeter, time, and money. 

In science, we will be finishing our unit over earth's surfaces. The learners will be exploring different types of soil and soil properties. They will be taking an assessment over earth's surfaces on Thursday, March 24th. 

Language & Literacy

In writing, we are reviewing for our big test next week. The learners will participate in a variety of writing activities including writing essays, brainstorming prompt ideas, and reviewing grammar skills with games and quizzes. 

In reading, we will continue to focus on comparing and contrasting different texts. The learners will compare fiction and nonfiction texts about similar topics. 

Social Studies

In social studies, we are continuing our study of the Texas Revolution. Throughout our study of the various battles in the Revolution, learners will be thinking about the following big questions: 

How does the past shape our present and future? 
Could the Revolution have been avoided? 
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Thank you, again, for taking the time to read our blog. We are looking forward to another great week with our fourth graders! 

Updates: Week 26

Thank you for taking the time to read our blog.  There is a lot of important information in this post. As always, please let us know if you have any questions. 

Important Announcements

Field Trip

• We will be sending information home about our fourth grade field trip this week. Please keep an eye out for upcoming blog posts regarding this trip. 

Open House

• Open House will be Thursday, March 10th from 5:30-7:00. During this time, you will be able to visit your learner's classrooms and see a few of the things they've been working on. In addition, we will have our Book Fair and Art Show open! 
• Please click this link to see a flyer about our TCE Art Show. This art will feature the creative artwork of our TCE Texans, framed and on display. Click here to pre-order your frame or to take advantage of the pre-show family discount. Also, please be aware that only CASH and CHECK will be accepted this year.

Flower/Plant Design Challenge

• Remember, your child may create any kind of flower/plant using various types of materials, excluding real plants or flowers. 
• We will have our guest judge voting on this round of design challenges on Friday, March 11th! 
• For more information regarding this design challenge, please see Ms. Applegate's Principal Blog. 

Book Fair & Donuts

• We will have our annual doughnuts with dad/family member on Tuesday, March 8th and Wednesday March 9th.  
• We are going to go with the letters of the last name again this year.  If your child's last name starts with the letters A-M come on Tuesday and then N-Z please come on Wednesday. 

Lap Tracker - A Message from Coach Yaeger

• By now all classes have been able to run using our student lap tracker. This system helps keep track of the number of laps the student have run and the amount of miles he or she have covered. 
• The students are then able to log on to the system themselves and monitor their own progress and where they stand among their grade.  
• Below is all of the log in information:
• Website: laptracker.net
• Username: tce (followed by students FULL ID number)   example : tce12345
• Password: (students FULL id number) followed by students first and last initial in lower case form. example: 12345ay

Holiday Coupons! 

• For the holidays, we gave our students a coupon book. Within this coupon book, there is a coupon for a fun experience for each month. We will send reminders as those days get closer, but you may want to go ahead and mark them in your calendar now.
• March 31st - 30 Minutes of Non-electronic Game Time
• April 29th - A Picnic Outside for Lunch
• May 26th - A Movie & Popcorn

Upcoming Dates

• Thursday, March 10 - Open House
• Thursday, March 10 - Chaperone Interest Forms Due
• Friday, March 11 - Shamrock Shuffle (During Specials)
• March 14-18 Spring Break
• Thursday, March 24 - Spirit Rally
• Friday, March 25 - Weather Day 
• Tuesday, March 29 - Writing STAAR Test 
• Friday, April 1 - Field Trip Permission Slip & Money Due

Character Education
The citizenship quality for March is Honesty. 

Each week, Town Center focuses on one life principle, or guiding character quality. The life principles for each week are discussed on the morning announcements and will be posted on our agendas. 

What are we learning?
Math & Science

*NEW MATH WEBSITES*
This week the learners were introduced to two new Math websites that they can use at school, as well as at home. The websites are listed below:
Prodigy- prodigygame.com/play
Khan Academy- khanacademy.org

In math, we will be testing over Division on Monday March 7th. We will begin our unit on measurement next week. The learners will be investigating customary and metric units, mass, volume, area, perimeter, time, and money. 

In science, we will be continuing  out unit over earth's surfaces. The learners will be exploring different types of soil and soil properties. They will also be creating their own experiment to test different types of soils.  

Language & Literacy

In writing, we will continue to explore expository writing, taking everything we've learned and putting it together to write incredible essays. The learners have been focusing on elaborating by using examples and clarification statements. This past week, they wrote about a place that is special to them and explained why it is special. Next week they will write about their dream career. We love reading our writers' essays! 

We have also been reviewing our grammar skills! Friday, March 4th is National Grammar Day, and our learners have been working on creating PSAs for our TCE Texans! 

Social Studies

In social studies, we are continuing our study of the Texas Revolution. Throughout our study of the various battles in the Revolution, learners will be thinking about the following big questions: 

How does the past shape our present and future? 
Could the Revolution have been avoided? 
_____

Thank you, again, for taking the time to read our blog. We are looking forward to another great week with our fourth graders! 

Updates Week 24

Thank you for taking the time to read our blog.  There is a lot of important information in this post. As always, please let us know if you have any questions. 

We had a wonderful time at our class Valentine's Parties. Thank you so much to the families that donated to the animal shelter and helped our learners to share their love with the animals. Thank you, also, to the parents that volunteered to come to the party and to our wonderful room moms that planned the fun! 

Thank you, as well, to many of you that shared the love with us in the form of chocolates and Valentines. We appreciate your generosity! 

Important Announcements

• Spring Pictures will be Monday, February 22nd. Learners will take individual pictures and a class picture. We will take our pictures first thing in the morning before Specials. 
• Jump Rope for Heart will be Friday, February 26th during Specials. 
• We will have another session with our partnership with DTCC this Friday, February 26th. During this session, the learners will learn about a variety of careers. 
• Open House will be Thursday, March 10th. We will have more information coming about this evening in the near future! 
• We are in need of a few important items: tissues, hand sanitizer, and disinfecting wipes. We would greatly appreciate if you would be willing to donate any of the above items to our classrooms.  We are trying to keep all of the germs away! 

Holiday Coupons! 

For the holidays, we gave our students a coupon book. Within this coupon book, there is a coupon for a fun experience for each month. We will send reminders as those days get closer, but you may want to go ahead and mark them in your calendar now.

*March 31st - 30 Minutes of Non-electronic Game Time
*April 29th - A Picnic Outside for Lunch
*May 26th - A Movie & Popcorn

Upcoming Dates

• Monday, February 22 - Spring Pictures
• Friday, February 26 - Jump Rope for Heart (During Specials)
• Thursday, March 10 - Open House
• Friday, March 11 - Shamrock Shuffle (During Specials)
• March 14-18 Spring Break
• Thursday, March 24 - Spirit Rally
• Friday, March 25 - Weather Day 
• Tuesday, March 29 - Writing STAAR Test 

Character Education
The citizenship quality for February is Respect. 

Each week, Town Center focuses on one life principle, or guiding character quality. The life principles for each week are discussed on the morning announcements and will be posted on our agendas. 


What are we learning?
Math & Science

In math, we will be continuing our Division unit. The learners will be exploring three different strategies to use when they are solving division problems. The strategies are dividing with partial quotients, dividing with area models, and the standard algorithm.

In science, we will be starting out unit over earth's surfaces. The learners will be exploring erosion, deposition, and weathering. They will also be creating their own experiment to test different types of soils.  

Language & Literacy

We are reading our second Junior Great Books story, No-Guitar Blues. As we read through the story, the learners have had the chance to explore the question, "What does it mean to have integrity?" At the end of our study of the story, the learners will participate in a student-led discussion about the story in which they will use evidence from the text to defend their opinions. 

In writing, we will continue to explore expository writing, taking everything we've learned and putting it together to write incredible essays. The learners have been focusing on elaborating by using examples and clarification statements. This past week, they had the chance to put together everything they've learned about the writing process in a midyear writing assessment. We're looking forward to reading the learners' writing. 

Social Studies

In social studies, we have begun our study of the Texas Revolution. Throughout our study of the various battles in the Revolution, learners will be thinking about the following big questions: 

How does the past shape our present and future? 
Could the Revolution have been avoided? 

Learners will also get to participate in several Mind Missions in which they will have the chance to go through the Engineering Design Process and apply Design Thinking to their creations. 
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Thank you, again, for taking the time to read our blog. We are looking forward to another great week with our fourth graders! 

Valentines Party

Our class parties will be Friday, February 12^th at 2:00 PM. Our room moms have helped to plan a fun party for our kiddos. The kids will have a chance to participate in some service-related activities in which they will be able to share their love with others. 

During the party, the kids will have the chance to make a decorative bag that they can use to collect Valentines. We know that some of the kids will want to make a box/bag at home, and that is okay too. Our only request regarding homemade bags/boxes is that they be small enough to fit inside their cubbies.

If your son/daughter would like to pass out Valentines, they may do that during the party. Each teacher will email a list of all of the students in their class in case your son/daughter would like to write names on his/her Valentines. We each have 23 students in our class, except for 4B which has 22 students. Of course, we do ask that if your son/daughter brings Valentines, that they bring enough for everyone in the class.

In addition to fun games and treats, we will have 3 service 'stations' that they will rotate through, each with a different focus.  They will work together to make a knot blanket for donation to kids who need a blanket in an emergency.  Second, they will have the opportunity to make a valentine for a resident at the Sandy Lake Nursing Home.  Third, they will have a 'puppy love' station where they can bring an item to donate to the animal shelter or bring loose change to combine with others for a class donation.  

If you would like to send in something for the animal shelter, feel free to have them bring it and drop it off anytime next week.  We will put boxes in each room for collection.  Here are some ideas:

• Treats
• Kitty Litter
• Any kind of wet or dry cat/dog food
• Loose change to collect for a donation to Animal Shelter

Finally, if you and your child would like to fully experience this joy of giving, the Room Moms will will gather as a small group to deliver these items after school.  We will meet at the Carrollton Animal Control Services at 3:30 at 2247 Sandy Lake Rd, Carrollton, TX.  They will gladly receive our collection and show us briefly around their facility.  We will then come back to Sandy Lake Rehab and Care Center (meet there at 4 pm) to drop off the valentines and hopefully pass out a few to residents  - 1410 E Sandy Lake Rd. (Note: This will not be a school sponsored event.) 

Important:  Please email your son/daughter's teacher and/or room mom and let us know if you are able to join in the delivery so we can tell the facilities how many of us to expect.  

If have any questions regarding our Class Valentines party, please don’t hesitate to ask. We're looking forward to a great celebration! 

Town Center Digital Resources

We are so lucky to have an abundance of digital resources for our learners to use both at school and at home. Some of these resources are paid for subscriptions. We thought it might be helpful to share the links to these resources with you in case you and your learner might want to access them from home.

Each learner has a "Password Helper" resource sheet in their take home folders. On this resource sheet, you can find the learners username and password for every website they access at school. If your learner has misplaced this resource sheet, please contact your learner's teacher to get another copy.

Mackin Via
Mackin Via is a resource through which the learners can access all of our databases. When they login to Mackin Via, learners will have access to all linked databases, including but not limited to: BrainPOP, World Book Online, Culture Grams, and Britannica. The username and password to Mackin Via is their normal username and password.

Our wonderful librarian, Mrs. Montgomery, created this how to video for our educators and leaners. While it's intended for educators and learners, it could be helpful for anyone wanting to use Mackin Via.

Discovery Education - coppellisd.discoveryeducation.com
Discovery Education is our science textbook. There are videos, articles, and interactive activities for the learners to experience. The username and password for Discovery Education is the learners' normal username and password.

No Red Ink - noredink.com
No Red Ink is a website that provides learners with interactive lessons and quizzes based on their individual interests. We use No Red Ink in class for assessments and as an extension activity for learners.

If you have any questions regarding any of these resources, please do not hesitate to email and ask. We are more than happy to help!

Updates - Week 13

Thank you for taking the time to read our blog. There is a lot of important information in this post. As always, please let us know if you have any questions. 

Important Announcements

• The 2nd grade students will be having a canned food drive to help feed many families in our community this holiday season. If you would like to help, please send any donations  with your child to school. The Canned Food Drive started this Monday, November 9th. We are going to have to a contest to see which grade level can collect the most cans/items, and we are tying this into our math curriculum! 
  
  
  For more information, please see this link. 

• We will have our annual Turkey Drive again this year. You may go online to donate a turkey, or you may bring one during our Turkey Drive on November, 20th. For more information, please see this flyer from 2nd Grade. 

• The learners will have the week of November 23rd off for the Thanksgiving holiday.  

Texan Town!

As a reminder, Texan Town takes place most Fridays from 7:50-8:40. (When we have a Spirit Rally, we do not have Texan Town.) The dates for Texan Town during the Fall Session are: October 2nd, 16th, & 30th, November 6th, 13th, & 20th, and December 4th & 11th. 

In addition, every Friday we have a modified "Texan Town" schedule. Therefore, on Fridays, we have Specials (Move & Groove) from 9:30-10:20 AM. Our lunch and recess times stay the same. 

Popcorn Money

Ms. Seifert is in need of some helpers to help her pop the popcorn. If you would like to volunteer to sign up, please view this sign up sheet. There are spots available on Friday, November 20th, and Friday, November 27th. Thank you to the wonderful parents that have already signed up! 

If your family is new to Town Center and you have any questions about Texan Town, please don't hesitate to ask. 

Upcoming Dates

• Tuesday, November 17th - Friday Schedule
• Friday, November 20th - Turkey Drive & TCE Turkey Trot 
• November 23-27 - NO SCHOOL 
• December 17th - Class Winter Parties
• December 18th - Early Release 

Character Education
The citizenship quality for November is Cooperation. 

Each week, Town Center focuses on one life principle, or guiding character quality. The life principles for each week are discussed on the morning announcements and will be posted on our agendas. 

What are we learning?
Math & Science

In Math, the learners will be learning how to to find equivalent fractions and compare fractions with unlike denominators. You can help us out by having conversations with your learners about fractions as you're cooking, shopping, or preparing for holiday meals. 

In Science, we recently wrapped up our mixtures unit. We will begin a short unit on Earth's renewable and nonrenewable resources.  

Language & Literacy

In reading, we continue to talk about main idea and summary of nonfiction texts. Throughout this unit, learners will think about three key essential questions: 

• How do readers make meaning from facts, details, and evidence?
• How does the organization of the text help readers understand the author’s message?
• How do I use the information I learned to support my thinking?

Throughout the unit, we will be reinforcing these enduring understandings:

• Expository and nonfiction texts provide facts, details, and evidence.
• What we read helps us make sense of the world.
• Text features help the reader locate evidence to support understanding.

In writing, we will begin to explore expository writing. The learners will continue to use the skills they've learned about writing more descriptively as they begin to write expository texts in class. 

Social Studies

In social studies, the learners will begin to learn about the European Explorers that came to America. They will specifically learn about how exploration and colonization of Spain and France shaped the history and culture of Texas. 

Thank you, again, for taking the time to read our blog. We are looking forward to another great week with our fourth graders! 

Updates: Week 6

Thank you for taking the time to read our blog. There is a lot of important information in this post. As always, please let us know if you have any questions. 

Important Announcements

• We had lots of visitors on Special Friends' Day! We would like to give a special thanks to our PTO volunteers and Room Moms for helping to coordinate that special day. 

• If you have not yet returned the BLUE Emergency Contact cards, please do so at your earliest convenience.

• Please click here to view a flyer about Destination Imagination. This is an after school opportunity for any learner in 3rd-5th grade. 
  
  

Texan Town!

Our first session of Texan Town will begin this Friday, October 2nd. Texan Town is a great opportunity for our learners to explore their passions and interests and to learn more about a variety of engaging topics. Texan Town takes place most Fridays from 7:50-8:40. The dates for Texan Town during the Fall Session are: October 2nd, 16th, & 30th, November 6th, 13th, & 20th, and December 4th & 11th. 

This week in class, the learners had the opportunity to choose their top five clubs/jobs from our Fall Catalog which features a variety of options. The learners will find out later this week which club or job they have been assigned. 

In addition, every Friday we have a modified "Texan Town" schedule. Therefore, on Fridays, we have Specials (Move & Groove) from 9:30-10:20 AM. Our lunch and recess times stay the same. 

Popcorn Money

One of our Texan Town clubs is Texan Treats. Ms. Seifert leads this club, and she and her learners work to pop and deliver popcorn to our Town Center Texans. Learners can purchase a subscription for $4.00.  It will cover the cost of popcorn for 8 weeks of Texan Town. Alternatively, learners can also purchase popcorn weekly for $.50 a bag. 

Ms. Seifert is in need of some helpers to help her pop the popcorn. If you would like to volunteer to sign up, please view this sign up sheet. Thank you in advance for your help! 

If your family is new to Town Center and you have any questions about Texan Town, please don't hesitate to ask. 

Fall Conferences 

• Fall Conferences will be Friday, October 9th at Town Center. In addition, we will be offering more conferences during the weeks of October 12th & 19th. You only need to sign up for one conference. However, in order to fit in all of our learners, we had to create two forms per classroom family. For more information regarding conferences, you may visit our previous blog post: Fall Conferences and the following sign ups: 
• 4A/4B Sign Up - Option One (October 9th) 
• 4A/4B Sign Up - Option Two (Weeks of October 12th & 19th)
• 4C/4D Sign Up - Option One (October 9th) 
• 4C/4D Sign Up - Option Two (Weeks of October 12th & 19th)

Upcoming Dates

• Friday, October 2nd - First Day of Texan Town 
• Friday, October 9th - NO SCHOOL/Parent-Teacher Conferences
• Monday, October 12th - NO SCHOOL 
• Friday, October 23rd - Spirit Rally 
• Monday, October 26th - Friday, October 30th - Red Ribbon Week

*On Monday, October 19th, the school will use a Friday schedule. This means that our fourth graders will have specials from 9:30-10:20. 

Character Education
The citizenship quality for October is Responsibility. 

Each week, Town Center focuses on one life principle, or guiding character quality. The life principles for each week are discussed on the morning announcements and will be posted on our agendas. 

What are we learning?
Math & Science

In Math, we will be discovering how to read and write decimals. We will also be discovering how to compare and order decimals using real world numbers. Please make sure that your learner is working on Reflex Math three times a week for at least 15 minutes. 

In Science, we will be investigating the difference between conductors and insulators. We will also be investigating different forms of energy.

Language & Literacy

In writing, we are working on the narrative writing process. The learners have been using the kernel essay strategy to plan their stories. They have loved this quick and easy way to add structure to their stories. We are loving their creativity and detail!

In reading, we are reviewing a variety of strategies to monitor our comprehension while we read. The learners have focused on checking for understanding, cross checking, and backing up to reread. In addition, we are continually working on building up our reading stamina. 

Social Studies

In Social Studies, we are wrapping up our unit on the Regions of Texas. The learners have been working on a blog post to compare our region of Texas to another region in our great state. The learners have been using their writing skills to show what they have learned in Social Studies. 

Thank you, again, for taking the time to read our blog. We are looking forward to another great week with our fourth graders!